Fished the merrimack on tues. & fri. Caught combos of strippers & blues.
Found that I cast out as far as possible and let sink to bottom. Start with a slow tip jiggling retrieve and speeded it up as the jig started off the bottom. I really cranked it from there on to the boat with one dead fall stop about 10' away. This was working on both bass & blues. The bass on the bottom as well as the first part of the fast retrieve & the blues liked the speed.
On the question of crabs- you might try fishing permit tactics. Break of claws and hook the crab on the point of the shell. Work the hook all the way
thru. Cast the crab 8 to 10 feet past and in front of the fish. Skip the crab back on the surface 4 or 5 feet and then let fall and wait.
Good luck.
Bob leonard